The present invention relates to a failure notice system in a data transmission system having a plurality of processors.
In a data transmission system for distributed data processing, a common path is connected with a plurality of remote processors, which are usually used as unattended processors and are remote from each other.
A failure of one of the processors can be caused by a power failure or the failure of the other units in the processor. When such a failure occurs, it is necessary to detect the failure and to inform other processors.
One prior art technique for accomplishing this includes a master or supervisor station, which sends periodic inquiries to all processors for the purpose of checking for failures. If no response is received from a processor, the master or supervisor station assumes there is a failure and notifies all other remote processors. This technique significantly adds to the traffic on the common loop.
Japanese Kokai No. 56-34260, published Apr. 6, 1981 describes an example of a technique for detecting and reporting failures, wherein a second common loop, in addition to the data transmission common loop, carries failure notices.